Safety system for pipe lines



' A ril 21, 1953 R. E. MEYNIG SAFETY SYSTEM FOR PIPEILINES Filed Dec. 13,

2 SHEET SSHEET 1 ROBERT E. MEYNlG INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS FIG-.2.

R. E. MEYNIG SAFETY SYSTEM FOR PIPE LINES April 21, 1953 2. SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed Dec. 15, 1946 ROBERT E. MEYN'IS {MM 5T M m in M. r... w

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. A a w 2 m Patented Apr. 21 1953 6 UNITED PATIENT orsrcs:

SAFETYS'YSTEM FOR PIPE LINES- RobentrEiMey-lnig, La- Porte Texn ApplicatiomD cember fi, 1946; S'rial N1'r".-7 ;985

Azfurthen ob jectns to providezai control valve:

which iszioperablerto shut ofii flow in'r a 'lineziwhen the 'pressure thereinrexceeds or: fall below predes Y termine d-zva'hies.

A-still further. object-.isato' provide-a valve iorsshutting 'ofit'aalflow line" either-"manually. or auto matica'lly; 1

Still another object is: to provide a.- valve: in. which achangeaini line pressure beyond certain limits'relea'sesa val've' memberfor movementz'from i 1 the'zvelocity' of; fluidzinzthezlineztoi closeithezpassagel intthezline.

The inventionalso comprehends a control' vaive which positively 'shuts ofi flow in the line until manual opening of' th'e valve is' efiected'i still further object is touprovide a control valve in: which the val-ve member fis -operable -to' closelth'e line whenithe" fluid-moving therethrough exceeds-Iapredetermined velocitye Otherpbjects and advantages. of 'tfieinvention will 'be more fully apparentirom the "following e description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig: 1 shows an elevational View of 'a valveembodying the invention,- and imposition-in the line; I 40 Fig; '2 is a vertical sectional 1 view of- 'jan embodiment'of the invention;

Fig. 3 is an elevation of a resetting to'olused with' -the device;

Fig. 4"iS arr-enlarged vertical sectionalview of 5-= an alternate embodiment in which the flowline-"- is'closed -by a fluctuation therein above -01 "below" predetermined values; 1

device of thevalve shownin "Fig; 4

isbelievedapparent from the description; but-- Fig; 6 is a' 'sectional view taken on line 6-;-6 Y in Fig. 5. V

Iirthe' drawing,the"device is shown-"generally afiz-asfconnected'"in a'flow'iinehaving-"successive? pipe sections-k'and 4" whiclr'are'respectively om5%.

541 wells: such as-.:oil'; and'zgas AVEHSQMDdGISiEXiStiIIg"=;

the upstream andiidown'streaxmsidesioiithewalvem Th'eQT connections interconnects:thw'sections; and 4 '1' An important"; (7 butmotFtheasnlie; -.us.e-: o the' inven'tiona isaxinconnectiomwi-tmthe flOW 10f:,-.

formationpressuresa; In'suchscasezpreferably, the:.=; section 4 is closely connectedss-to:therChristmasj tree or well head, itib'eing: intended that insevent an: undesirable pressures condition; developes im' the linee Eibeyond. theevalv'e;thesballojl'iwilkmoveiav.

byvirtuecof .thei. flow'z ofc fluids: imthesline; intogz: engag ement 'withftherseat; ring A 3,1having1seating1; surface lzthereon'; 1 Attentionais nowr directed tor: tne valvetstructure v-.which';vinfsone:forml ofrthezinw ventiony m'ovesithe ball .1: into: theifluidisstreami whereby?the.ball islmovediintozengagement with; the seatzlll;

The ah'ousingaor ibody is-sisi' shown ;as -threadedly;t connected inc-the side openingsof' the?! 3: although. it isit'o" be understood-:that :thesetwo elements may bei-formedasianiintegralunit ifuso desired. The? housing :5 has antaxial borerfiitherein; there being; a counter-bore? at; theaupper end of; the housingitoi receive-the: piston; l zl-lwhich has a tapered :nether;

surface: I 6 adaptedctor engagethezshoul-deri l 1 at" theflower end- ,oftithe counterbore.

Theiipistorr. l2 rcomprises,:-.upward: extension: I 3:- surrounded by annuli I4 and I5 and interposedseal cups which. face -upwardlyrancliorm: a seal against leakage-through the: counterborev Thezupper' end3of the-extensional fiiisr'threaderlly connected tothe sleeve H whereby theplunger part's' are? securednin': assembled relation.- Arstud 9 threaded into th e upper end of the sleeves HY.- has-head 8 thereon' to receive and supportthesball f 1 when the valve "is opened as shown Fig.2 21': A ring I 0" threaded: inthe upper-' en'd' of: the? count'erbore permits 'free axial movement ofith'ei piston -assembly, butdetermines the upper lilnitw of travel of the assembly: It- -is intended'thatthezpiston shall befree to rise-a suiificient distance that thebalh'l is supported within the fluid stream): andis carr-ied bysuch--.stream;to closure position *upon the seat-42 as indicated ih dotted r outlihe-irr-Fig-rZJ Pressure within the line 4 and the connection r normally" holds the plunger l2-" do'w-nwardly against a spring 1 8' 'wh'ich is tensioned:by the' pliig Igadjustablypositioned' in threads zfle The-operation of the device thus far described If, however, the pressure on the downstream side of the valve 2 diminishes appreciably, as when the line is broken or other undesirable conditions develop whereby there is created a loss of fluid through the line, the piston l2 rises whereby the ball 1 is lifted into the fluid stream within the line 4-4 and is carried by the high velocity fluid therein to the indicated seating position whereby flow in the line is terminated.

In order to safeguard against the loss of line fluid from leakage past the piston 12, and to give an indication of such leakage, a safety valve 23 is provided at the lower end of the body 5, this valve has a stem 24 extending slidably through an opening in the bottom of the plug 2| threaded at 22 into the lower end of the housing 5. A spring 28 surrounds the stem 24 and normally holds the valve oif its seat. If leakage develops around the piston l2, the velocity of the leaking fluid will move the valve 23 downwardly to closure, the fluids leaking prior to closure of the valve 23 passing downwardly through the bore 25 and out through passages 26 and 21. In this manner pressure on opposite sides of the piston becomes equalized and closure of the flow line takes place. Such closure immediately reveals the failure of the valve.

Ifthe valve 2 closes as from a break in the flow line or from leakage past the piston l2 as above explained, normal operations may be restored by removing the safety valve assembly at the lower end of the housing and introducing the tool 40 (Fig. 3) into the bore 6 and interconnecting the male threads 39 on the tool with the female threads 38 in the lower end of the piston l2. Downward pull is then exerted upon the tool and piston assembly to compress the spring I8, and a pin is then inserted in the opening 4| in the tool at the lower end of the housing 5. In the meantime, of course, the ball 1 retains the line closed. Assuming that necessary repair and/or adjustments have been made, the valve 46 in the by-pass 45 is then opened to reestablish flow and normal pressure conditions in the flow line. Thereupon the pressures on the opposite sides of the ball 1 are equalized whereby the ball moves under gravity to the position shown in Fig. 2.

The valve 46 may then be closed, the tool 46 removed, and the valve 23 reinstalled whereupon normal conditions in the line are reestablished.

Attention is directed to the fact that the valve 2 operates automatically to close the flow line, but is reset manually to restore flow in the line. Such a device is of particular utility for shutting off flow in lines from off-shore wells in eventthe line leading to the operator develops a break. Alternately, of course, it is possible to close off flow from a well at a remote point by merely opening the line momentarily whereby the valve is actuated and closes off the line until subsequently restored manually to open position.

Where a plurality of wells are producing into a common separator, the procedure which is described may be used for closing off all of the wells.

A modified form of the invention is shown in Figs. 4 and 5 and 6, this form being designed to operate to close the line 4-4' whenever the pressure in the line exceeds or falls below certain predetermined values. The T .6 of Fig. 2 is replaced by a cross 6 and the body 5 is inverted whereby the deposit of sand or other foreign matter in the working parts of the device is avoided.

The valve 23' is similar to the valve 23 but is normally open due to gravity acting thereon. Hence no spring is required to keep this valve open. The cap 56 has downwardly extending passages 51 to exhaust fluid in the event of failure of the piston l2 and until such fluids attain a sufficient velocity to close the valve.

The piston I2 is of special construction, to be further described, and is urged downwardly by the compression spring i8. In event there is a drop in pressure in the chamber 52, within the cross 6', or the pressure on opposite sides of the piston 12' is equalized, the piston will move downwardly and will force the ball 1 from its indicated position where it is held by the resilient grip of the annulus 53 of flexible material such as rubber and the like held in place at the lower end of the body or housing 5 by means of screws 54 passing upwardly through rings 55 and 56. When the ball 1 is so released, it moves under gravity to position upon the head 51 on stem 58 which passes through a stuffing box assembly 59 in the lower portion of the bore of the cross 6. Thereupon, the ball I is moved by the velocity of fluid flowing in the line to the position indicated in dotted outline whereby the line is closed.

When the flow line 44 is to be restored to normal operation as in the manner above explained by the use of the by-pass 45 and valve 46, the valve 1 moves to position upon the head 51 when normal conditions are established in the line. Thereupon, the cap 66 being removed from the packing assembly 59, the stem 58 and assoeiated head 51 are pushed upwardly until the valve l is returned in position within the ring 53.

When the pressure in the line 44 falls below predetermined value the operation of this form of the invention is identical to that previously described. However, the piston i2 is of a special construction whereby an excessive pressure in the flow line will likewise effect operation of the Valve to close the line. This mode of operation is made possible by the provision of a central bore 65 in the piston assembly, a small valve 66 being provided in this bore and urged by compression spring 61 to seating position in the lower end of the bore 65. The spring 61 is so dimensioned that this valve remains closed at all times except when a pressure in excess of a predetermined value developes in the flow line. When such a condition developes the valve 66 opens and permits line pressure to develope on the upper side of the piston l2 whereupon the piston moves downwardly as previously indicated, to effect closure of the flow line.

To assure positive downward movement of the piston [2 when the valve 65 rises from its seat from excessive pressure within the line 4, 4, a pin 68 forms a downward extension at the lower end of valve 66and passes through an oblong opening in latch pin 69 which is normally urged to the left by compression spring 70 seated in a recess in the piston body. An enlargement II on pin 68 fits within the oblong opening in the latch pin when the valve 66 is closed. If this valve is lifted from its seat, the enlargement is withdrawn from within the pin and permits the pin to move under influence of spring 10. The valve 66 is thus held spaced from its seat as the piston l2 moves downwardly to force the ball I from within the annulus 53 so that closure of the line 4, 4' results.

As the piston I2 moves downwardly, pressures on the opposite sides gradually equalize and the valve 66 tends to close, but is restrained therefrom by engagement of the enlargement H upon the latch pin 69. As the piston approaches its lowermost position, however, the end of the pin 69 engages the inner periphery of the stop ring 12 and is forced inwardly whereby the valve 66 is permitted to reseat.

Thereafter the valve may be reopened in the manner already explained and actuation efiecting closure of the line l, 4' will follow only when pressure conditions in the line, and within the chamber 52, fall below or rise above values predetermined by the tensioning of the springs 18 and 61.

Broadly the invention comprehends a control valve to be installed in a flow line and operable to close the line when predetermined pressure conditions develop within the line.

The invention claimed is:

1. A valve for flow lines comprising, a body adapted to be connectel in the flow line and having a passage therethrough, there being a bore in the body extending transversely of said passage, a seat in said passage coaxial therewith, a valve member positioned said boreand projectible therefrom into said passage to engage said seat, a piston in said bore in projecting relation to said valve member, means urging said piston toward the passage, said piston being responsive to fluid pressure in the line, to be held in retracted position against said means when the pressure in the line exceeds a predetermined value, a pressure equalizing channel across said piston, and valve means normally closing said channel and openable by pressure in the line exceeding said value by a predetermined amount.

2. A valve for flow lines comprising, a body adapted to be connected in the flow line and having a passage therethrough, there being a bore in the body extending transversely of said passage, a seat in said passage coaxial therewith, a valve member positioned in said bore and projectible therefrom into said passage to engage said seat, a piston in said bore in projecting relation to said valve member, means urging said piston toward the passage, said piston being responsive to fluid pressure in the line, to be held in retracted position against said means when the pressure in the line exceeds a pre-determined value, and normally open check valve means in the outer end of the bore responsive to leakage of line fluid past said piston to close said bore to equalize the pressure on opposite sides of the piston. 1

3. A valve for flow lines comprising a body adapted to be connected in the flow line and pressures for moving the valve into the fluid stream in said passage.

4. A valve for flow lines comprising a body adapted to be connected in the flow line and having a passage therethrough, a bore in the body extending transversely of said passage, a piston in said bore, a valve seat in said passage, a ball valve, a spring in the bore above said passage urging the piston toward said passage, said piston being responsive to pressure in the passage exceeding the force of said spring to normally remain in an outward position, and means releasably retaining the valve in said bore in laterally spaced relation to said seat and proximate said piston.

5. A valve for flow lines, comprising, a body adapted to be connected in the flow line and having a flow passage therethrough, a bore in said body extending transversely of said passage, a seat in said passage coaxial therewith, a ball valve in the inner end of said bore adjacent said passage, means releasably retaining said valve in said bore in laterally spaced relation to said seat, spring biased piston means in said bore urging said valve toward said passage in opposition to flow line pressures in the passage, said piston means being responsive to predetermined high and low pressures effective on the side of the piston remote from said valve for moving the valve into said passage, and normally open check valve means in the outer end of said bore responsive to leakage of line fluid past said piston to close said bore to equalize the pressure on opposite sides of said piston.

6. A valve according to claim 5 having a resetting member slidably extendible into said bore to reset said piston and valve in their original positions.

ROBERT E. MEYNIG.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 756,282 Rankin Apr. 15, 1904 871,717 Lyter Nov. 19, 1907 908,337 Shad Dec. 29, 1908 1,290,660 Rettig Jan. 7, 1919 1,312,644 Raab et al Aug. 12, 1919 1,339,383 Beese May 11, 1920 1,518,461 Smith Dec. 9, 1924 2,296,648 McMahon Sept. 22, 1942 2,327,055 McMahon Aug. 17, 1943 2,475,585 Baird July 12, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 198,723 Great Britain June 11, 1923 214,468 Great Britain Apr. 24, 1924 OTHER REFERENCES Oil Weekly Magazine, April 22, 1946, 1 sht. dwg., Advertisement of Derneal Supply Co. 

